Blog Archive
July 2026
A New Year, A New Board of Directors
07/01/2026
Home Sweet Home...No Moving Required
07/01/2026
How Did You Get Here?
07/01/2026
Scams, Frauds, AI…Oh No, Not Again
07/01/2026
Two's Company!
07/01/2026
Village Magic
07/01/2026
June 2026
Ability Resource Fair - A.R.F.!
06/01/2026
Goals, Priorities and Tasks. Oh, My!
06/01/2026
Jabber-Walkies
06/01/2026
LGBTQ+ Bars: A Book-talk
06/01/2026
Ladies Who Lunch
06/01/2026
President’s Message
06/01/2026
April 2026
Altadena’s Coyote Comeback
04/29/2026
Catch it Before it's Gone!
04/29/2026
Legacy Project
04/29/2026
Not Too Old To Get Carded
04/29/2026
President's Message
04/29/2026
Stuck in Milwaukee - Airplane Travel 2026
04/29/2026
The Art Journaling Workshop
04/29/2026
Think You're Losing Your Mind?
04/29/2026
Visiting The Getty
04/29/2026
March 2026
My Home For Now
03/30/2026
My Home for Now
03/30/2026
Do I Really Need a Will and/or a Trust?
03/26/2026
Everybody Needs a Blankie
03/26/2026
Kickoff: Prepared 50+ Emergency Preparedness
03/26/2026
The Birth of an Archive for Pasadena Village
03/26/2026
Too Smart to be Scammed?
03/26/2026
“I DIDN’T KNOW THAT!” A Refresher Course
03/26/2026
Across the Waiting Room
03/11/2026
February 2026
Status - February 28, 2026
02/28/2026
AI Presentation
02/26/2026
Exploring the “Cheech”
02/26/2026
Mary Mejia is Here to Make a Difference
02/26/2026
One Year On
02/26/2026
President’s Message – March 2026
02/26/2026
January 2026
Hearts & Limbs in Zambia
01/28/2026
Lost Trees of Altadena Return Home
01/28/2026
President's Message: WHY the Village Works
01/28/2026
TV: Behind the Scenes
01/28/2026
Trauma to Triumph
01/28/2026
Halloween Gratitude
By John Tuite · Posted 10/27/2021
Men's Time Topic Discussion for Tuesday, November 2nd
Welcome Gentlemen of the Village! It is November, 2021! November: I grew up in the Midwest, so November was always
a time of warning! danger! darkness! threat! “Spooky monsters" had appeared on the last day of the previous month, warning
of tricks without treats, announcing their presence with bloody faces and terrifying shouts…nothing like today's benign encounters
intended to buy off the neighbors’ children with pounds of chocolate! No homeowner was safe…no child save threat of bodily harm! \
Burning leaves on curbsides, despite the pleasant aroma, spoke to fire’s curse to home and hearth!
If that weren’t enough, winter was coming with snow, sleet, hail, and ice! Darkness, shadows, and nightfall came before suppertime!
With the cold came “longies”, sweaters, caps, scarves, and overcoats! By the time you were dressed for the mile walk to school
you were sweaty and grumpy, and you probably forgot where you left your homework! Oh god! What explanation to give to
Sister F’rgivemenot! Oh god! It was such a pleasant childhood!
But this is fifty, sixty, and seventy years later. What shall we choose for a topic for November, 2021? I heard it! I heard it! What more fitting
than than Gratitude! By the end of the month, what with gloomy mornings, overcast days, waiting for Christmas holidays, the
calendar was kind enough to place in the last week that glorious festival of Gratitude, a whole day of giving thanks, Thanksgiving!!
But what is it other than that sigh of relief of having missed another year of root canals, stolen identity, and the Covid?
“Gratitude is a spontaneous feeling but, increasingly, research demonstrates its value as a practice…that is, making conscious
efforts to count one’s blessings. Studies show that people can deliberately cultivate gratitude…and there are important
social and personal benefits to doing so. It is possible to feel grateful for loved ones, colleagues, animals, nature, and
life in general. The emotion generates a climate of positivity that both reaches inward and extends outward.”
So, let’s test out this theory that the practice of gratitude can give us “a climate of positivity”. I want you all and each to briefly
and sincerely tell us who and what you are grateful for, and why, if you can, simply. And let it sink in, if it will, and test the
healing nature of Thankfulness…Gratitude…Appreciation…Being the Beneficiary…Making a Gratitude List…Celebrating
Gratitude Daily…Being mindful of my world...Tell us the little things that you’re grateful for...and no repeats, please.
John Tuite
